Sleep, I'll Be Here
by TheBloodInfinite20XX
Summary: Frank Williams befriends a mysterious girl named Saya Otonashi during a trip to Okinawa, Japan, that leads him on a path of self-discovery during this tale that jumps between past and present. Takes place after Blood Plus.
1. Chapter 1 - Part 1

**Authors Note: So a little back story. I actually wrote this over seven years ago with encouragement from my friend. The end result, it sucked, a lot. Spelling errors, grammar issues, it wasn't very good, in fact, it was pretty bad.**

 **It wasn't until this year when I started working on other stories (And by this point I have vastly improved, mostly) that I decided to revisit this story and give it a complete do over. I also wanted to make this a coming of age story that happens to be centered around my favorite anime of all time: Blood +.**

August 16th, 2009, Frank Williams was an ordinary man with an ordinary job, working as a janitor for a brokerage firm in a small city in New York State. During one of their Christmas Parties the previous year, Frank and all other employees entered in a betting pool, where he surprisingly came up as the winner. The prize was an all expenses paid trip to Okinawa, Japan financed by everyone from the company. It was different, exciting, Frank fell into the low-income category, and it had been a while since he was able to travel anywhere in quite a long time. But, what was supposed to be a vacation would set Frank on a path that would drastically change how he saw the world. He was about to embark on a life-changing experience, an ordinary man who would attract not so ordinary people. He would come to learn that nothing would ever be the same for years to come.

After spending hours at the Shuri Castle and Churaumi Aquarium, he decided to roam the streets, loitering and looking around. It was late at night, the cool summer breeze hit Frank as he passed by different places, it wasn't until he came across some stone stairs that caught his eye that he chose to stop. After walking up for what seemed like forever, he reached the top, stumbling across what looked like a crypt of some kind. He went further towards it when something on the ground caught his eye; a pink rose with a blue ribbon attached to it. Frank's fascination with finding things got the best of him, but as he took it and put it in his pocket carefully, he became spooked when he heard a noise inside the crypt, sounding somewhat like a person. Not being a fan of the dark, he walked in slowly, trying to be careful. When his eyes adjusted to the dark, he saw what looked like the figure of a person. Upon closer inspection, he saw that inside the crypt was a girl who looked no older than sixteen, on her hands and knees naked with long black hair going down to her back, Frank stood there observing her before speaking up.

"Hey, are you alright?"

The girl looked up at him with a confused look in her big reddish brown eyes; she was shivering from not having any clothes. Frank took off his sweater and calmly walked over to the girl, wrapping her in it as best as he could.

"You're freezing. Why are you in here? Are you hurt?"

"I…uh I uh…"

The girl could hardly make words as she looked at Frank, dazed and confused.

"Look it's okay, alright, let's um, let's just take it nice and slow, I'm gonna get you to the hospital, okay?"

"No…I need your help"

She was trying her best to respond.

"I'm trying to help you, that's why we're going to the hospital, I'm gonna call an ambulance"

"No…Wait!"

She screamed to him, trying her best to regain her senses and communicate with him.

"Alright, Alright, calm down okay, do you need me to do something for you?"

"I…I need you…I need you to…to take me some…somewhere…I need…you"

The girl started to stutter as she tried to communicate with him.

"Alright, I'll take you wherever you want to go, here, let me help you look a little more decent"

Frank took the sweater off of her and helped put it on her and zipped it up. The girl's tiny frame made the sweater look big on her so she was covered up and not exposed, and while Frank was doing this he looked around the crypt. Frank was known for being observant but due to the circumstances he did not notice what was in the back, cobwebs but not any ordinary cobwebs, huge ones, what was odd about them was they were all woven together, almost shaped like a cocoon.

Frank decided it was time to head out, it was hard enough to help a naked young girl, but it was even more difficult knowing she was in such a disgusting place.

"Alright, come on now, we'll take it nice and slow, one step at a time"

He held her close putting her arm around his shoulder to support her, as they slowly made their way outside of the crypt. Frank had always been nervous around strangers, this, of course, was obviously no different, but he knew he couldn't leave her in this place in the state she was in, and he figured if there was trouble he could call the emergency line of Japan. With that much in mind, he pressed forward, occasionally looking back as if expecting something to jump out at them.

"Th…Than…Thank you"

"It's okay; it's no problem at all"

"What…what is your…name?"

"Frank"

"I'm Saya"

"Well, it's nice to meet you"

Frank knew this was beginning of a long and interesting journey; he could almost feel it.


	2. Chapter 2

April 10th, 2010, a knocking on the door caused Frank to wake up after drifting off to sleep on the couch while watching television. He had started developing problems with his sleep for the past month, and recently it was becoming more frequent.

"Frank? Frank are you in there?"

"Hold on I'm coming"

Frank realized he was only wearing a pair of shorts, he didn't like to be seen without a shirt, quickly he raced into his room and threw on a t-shirt before hurrying over to the door to let Saya in.

"I told you we would be here in no time"

Frank let Saya in, she was wearing her gym outfit, she had probably been exercising or maybe it was too hot for her outside. He took her gym bag and was about to close the door when Saya's, well, for lack of a better word "lover" Hagi made his way in.

Hagi was a tall gorgeous man, with his pale skin, ice blue eyes and strong features. He wore his usual suit and attire, and was, of course, carrying around his large heavy cello case with his bandaged hand, and while anyone would find them being together odd or inappropriate what with Hagi appearing older, there was so much more to it than meets the eye.

"Come on Frank you can say hi to Hagi"

Frank looked at Hagi with a bit of unease as he tried to be friendly.

"Hi…"

"Hello Frank"

"So do you wanna head out now?"

"Actually…"

Saya walked over to the couch and had a seat as she continued to speak.

"There's something we need to talk about. Hagi? Do you remember what we agreed upon?"

Saya's focus shifted to Hagi, along with Frank's.

"I understand. Saya wishes to speak to you, so I have agreed to give you both some time alone, there is no need to worry"

"Um, it's okay, you don't have to leave"

"I will be fine"

Frank felt bad; he never wanted to feel like he was interfering with people's lives, he shifted his attention from Hagi to Saya as he tried to speak to her.

"Saya you don't have to tell him to leave, we can talk about whatever you want while he's here"

"I was the one who made the suggestion"

Frank didn't understand why Hagi would want him and Saya to have time to themselves. Frank looked away for a bit, before looking back at Hagi once more.

"Are you sure you're okay with this? I know how you have to be by her side"

"It's fine"

Hagi took his hand off of Frank's shoulder and left.

"Saya, what's this all about? I thought we were going out"

"Is it alright if we sit on the couch? We need to talk"

Saya gently patted the seat next to her. Frank knew that whatever was going on he wasn't getting out of it. He locked the door and took a seat right next to Saya; it was time to get comfortable.


	3. Chapter 3

August 16th, 2009, it had been several hours since Frank had helped the mysterious girl Saya; she had asked him for help getting to a place; she needed to go to see someone. That someone's name was Kai; Kai had two twin daughters, Kanade and Hibiki, and was the owner of a small ramen shop. Frank didn't know what it was about but they were apparently really happy to see each other, with tears in their eyes, indicating they were reunited for what appeared to be the first time in a long time. Time had passed since then and now Frank found himself in some kind of interrogation room, being asked tons of different questions about what he was doing at the crypt, what does he know about Saya, all sorts of different questions revolving around whether or not he had a connection with the girl he was only trying to help.

Frank sat in the middle of a white room with a single camera and a blacked out window. He figured it was best to not get up or even say anything, he should just stay put and wait patiently for someone to return. His eyes shifted from the table in front of him to the security camera in the top corner, as he went over possible scenarios of what might happen to him in his head.

Do they think he assaulted Saya and will he be charged with that? Would he have to appear in court? Would he be hauled off to jail? As Frank's brain accumulated more thoughts, he remembered where he found Saya and started thinking maybe there was more to it. What was with the cobwebs in the back area, there was something about them that was off but Frank didn't want to stick around and observe them because he knew he had to help Saya; but was there more to her than that? The people who had taken him didn't look like police officers, in fact, they didn't even look Japanese, they were American. Well, one of them was Jamaican.

What if they were apart of some kind of secret government agency, what if he had been in the wrong place at the wrong time? What if he had uncovered something he shouldn't have and because of that would never be allowed to leave, or worse. The suspense was killing him but he was too afraid to do anything, he just had to know, what on earth was going to happen next.

Frank jumped as he heard the door unlock, it was Saya carrying a brown paper bag and his sweater that he lent her, although thankfully this time she was dressed, even if it was a hospital gown, and her hair had been cut shorter, in fact, a lot shorter.

"Hey"

"Uh, hey"

Frank was understandably nervous.

"It's okay, you don't need to be afraid"

Saya tried to calm Frank's nerves; she approached him, handed him back his sweater, and then gave him the bag, afterward she took a seat across from him.

"I um, I would just really like to know what's going on. Who are you? I mean like, your full name"

"I'm sorry, I didn't get the chance to properly introduce myself; I'm Saya, Saya Otonashi"

"Frank Williams"

Frank put his sweater on the back of his chair and put the bag on the table.

"What is this?"

"It's ramen, Kai made it for you; we thought maybe you were getting hungry"

"Oh well, thanks"

Frank took the container along with the chopsticks, he opened it up and observed it for a second before looking up at Saya.

"It's okay, it's just ramen"

Saya smiled at Frank, hoping to put him at ease with her pleasant demeanor.

"Look I'd really like to know what's going on. I've tried explaining to these people multiple times what happened, can you please tell them that I just found you there?"

Frank was somewhat hysterical, he always had trouble with overreacting to certain things.

"Calm down Frank, they understand, I explained everything to them, they know you were just trying to help me, they just need to work out a few more things and then they will take you wherever you want to go"

"Look, I just don't want anything to happen alright, I didn't do anything. I'm just a janitor from New York State who won a betting pool to travel here, that's it"

"Listen, you're not in trouble and no one is going to hurt you, it's okay, just relax"

Saya reached over and took his hand, she brought it a bit closer to her, holding it gently to try and calm him down.

"Alright, so um, what was the name of the person that made this food? Kai?"

"Kai? Oh he's my brother, well…we're not related by blood but we're still family"

"Oh, so you haven't seen him in a while? You seemed really happy to see him"

"We thought it was going to be a really long time before we saw each other again"

"Oh, I see. So what were you doing in that place, did something happen to you? I mean you seem well, fine now which is good but you know, what happened?"

Saya looked at Frank, she wasn't sure if she would be able to answer the question, given the circumstances.

"Do you really want to know?"

"Well considering everything I have been through tonight, I uh, I'd like to know"

Frank felt he should get some kind of answer and not be left in the dark.

"I have to get permission first to tell you what you want to know but the thing is if they say it's alright, once I tell you, you cannot tell anyone else, do you understand?"

Frank felt like he deserved some sort of explanation and figured he was already too far down the rabbit hole to get out now.

"Okay, yes, I'd really like to know"

Since Saya said Frank would not get in trouble or be harmed, he thought maybe it wouldn't hurt to find out.

"I have to go and talk to some people, when I get back I'll tell you whether or not I can give you the details on everything"

Saya got up and started heading out.

"Saya?"

Frank called out in order to get her attention; she stopped and looked back at him.

"You will be coming back right?"

Saya smiled at Frank reassuringly.

"Yes, I'll be back, oh and you should eat your ramen now before it gets cold"

"Oh yeah, thank you"

Frank was never much of a ramen guy, but he had to admit; Saya's brother sure could cook.


	4. Chapter 4

April 10th, 2010, Frank took a seat next to Saya on the couch. They had been friends for several months now, really good friends; in fact, some would say they were close. However, things had changed, and both of them knew they couldn't avoid it anymore. Saya noticed Frank was staring off into the distance, he was probably deep in thought; Saya put her hand on his shoulder as they prepared to talk.

"How have you been?"

"What? Oh, uh, I've been well. Your hair looks nice"

Frank noticed Saya's hair had been cut shorter, she had been letting it grow out a little since they had first met. Frank always thought Saya looked like a rock star with her hair grown longer, but he still thought she looked good with the short style she had been accustomed to.

"Thank you"

Saya smiled after hearing Frank's compliment before continuing to discuss things with him.

"Listen, I'm sorry we haven't had much time to spend together, I know we used to hang out all the time"

"Well no, I understand you're busy with a lot of things, how's therapy going?"

"It's good. My therapist has really been helping me, it feels good to talk about everything that's happened. So, I…"

Saya thought about it for a second, she had gone over dozens of times what she might say to him, but even after doing that, she still couldn't find the right words.

"What?"

"Frank, what's really been going on?"

"Going on with what?"

"With you. Well, I mean, not just you, but with us. You've become distant"

Frank wasn't sure how to respond, he had felt the need to keep his distance, for numerous reasons, mostly personal.

"Well um…I figured you were busy and that you wanted more time with your family and friends"

"Frank, it's okay, you can be honest"

"I'm just going through some things right now, that's why I haven't been able to see you"

"Frank, you just said it was because I'm busy"

"Ye…Yeah, I'm going through stuff and you're busy"

"Frank please, you don't need to make this difficult, you can talk to me"

Saya scooted closer to Frank and put her arm around his shoulder, he started to feel uncomfortable.

"Look things are just…I…uh…"

Frank found himself growing more and more frustrated with the situation, he knew Saya wasn't trying to put him on the spot, but he couldn't help but feel that way.

"Frank, I understand"

"You do?"

"I know what this is all about, there is a reason why you don't want to tell me the truth, and I can tell it has a lot more to do with something else other than this situation"

"No! It's not like that!"

Frank growing a bit more defensive and hysterical.

"Please Frank calm down"

Frank wasn't sure what to do or say at this point.

"You look so tired; you shouldn't get all worked up like this"

"I haven't slept in a while"

"I know you aren't comfortable telling me what's wrong but…"

She took her arm off of his shoulder and got up, she took a few steps away from Frank, she remembered she was covered in sweat which probably made him uncomfortable.

"Darn, I need to change my clothes. Would it be alright if I used your shower? I want to be able to change into my regular clothes and I don't want to get them all gross"

"Um, sure"

"Thank you, I'll be out in ten minutes"

Frank knew he would have no choice but to stay and confront Saya, it's not like he could just leave her in his apartment, or force her out if things got too emotional for him. Saya was much stronger than her small appearance made her out to be. In fact, she was way stronger due to her nature. But having no choice in the matter didn't make things any easier, all he could do was go along with it and hope that whatever she wanted to discuss wouldn't make things harder than they already were.


	5. Chapter 5

August 17th, 2009, After several hours of questions, Frank was finally allowed to leave. Him and Saya went back to the place where it all began. She had brought her backpack with her, inside was an old journal and a bunch of folders.

"So you really want to know the truth about who I am?"

"Well, am I gonna like what I hear?"

"It depends whether or not you believe me about who I am, or rather; what I am"

Frank started to get that feeling in the pit of his stomach that something wasn't right.

"And Frank, there is something you need to know; I didn't get permission to tell you"

"So why did you bring me back here?"

"Because I'm going to tell you anyway, you shouldn't have had to put up with so much when all you were trying to do was help me, I figure telling you the truth will hopefully make up for all of this"

"Look if there is some sort of risk it's okay, you don't have to tell me"

"As long as you don't tell anyone about this you will be fine, and even if they find out, they won't hurt you, I will make sure they don't hurt you"

"So wait, there's a possibility I could get hurt?"

Saya just looked at Frank for a bit, she then smiled to try and put him at ease.

"You know Frank, you ask a lot of questions"

Saya let out a small laugh. Frank started to get a sense that maybe nothing would go wrong, so he tried his best to just go with the flow and not think ahead like he usually would.

"You're right, I do question a lot of things, I'm sorry"

"It's okay, you don't need to apologize"

"So let's hear it"

"Well I have some information that will explain everything, but I know you won't believe it, so I want to show you something first"

Saya reached into her backpack to reveal a small but elegant looking knife. Frank took one look at it and started to get nervous.

"Uhm…"

Saya proceeded to slowly cut into her hand.

"Wait! Wait stop!"

Saya showed Frank her wound, he watched in horror as it closed up. Frank's heart dropped all the way down to his stomach. All he could do is stand there, afraid to move; the quiet empty crypt filled up with the sounds of Frank's ragged breaths as his eyes filled with tears of fright. Saya took out a tissue and cleaned the knife as well as her hand and put it back in the bag.

"Please Frank, calm down okay, can you hear me? Frank? Please believe me when I tell you I'm not going to hurt you"

Saya didn't know what to do, she could sense how panicked he was, she couldn't blame him for reacting like this, Saya realized that she was going to have to calm him down herself. At that moment Frank's brain screamed at him to run, to walk, to do something in order to get away, but all he could do was stand there afraid as Saya put down the journal and the folders and slowly approach him.

"Pl…Please…I…"

Frank stammered and stuttered as he froze. When Saya was close to him, she wrapped her arms around Frank and hugged him.

"Please Frank, please calm down, I knew if I tried explaining to you the truth you wouldn't believe me about what I am, I'm not going to hurt you, you helped me remember, you did so much for me when you didn't have to, please believe me when I say I already consider you well…a friend"

"A friend?"

Frank's breathing started to slow down, he started to relax in Saya's arms.

"Yes, you're my friend"

Frank finally calmed down even after what had just happened. Saya then released him and gently held his hands.

"Are you alright now?"

Saya was still concerned.

"Yeah, I'm sorry it's just…"

Frank couldn't find the right words to express how he felt, but Saya understood completely.

"It's okay, I understand"

"So um…I guess you have some explaining to do"

"That I do"

Saya and Frank attempted to clean the ground a bit; just enough so they could sit down, she then handed him the notebook and folders as they went over all of the information.

Saya explained that she was born in 1833 with her twin sister Diva and that they belonged to a species known as chiropteran, or as the mainstream might label them; vampire. They were discovered by Joel Goldschmidt as babies in cocoons, preserved in the abdomen of a mummified chiropteran named SAYA that was found in Iceland, which Saya was named after. Growing up in a location called the zoo, Saya got to live a life of luxury with jewels, gowns, and everything she could desire, while Diva's life was nothing short of abysmal. She was kept caged in a locked room with nothing more than rags to keep her warm and was experimented on and shown no love, unlike her twin sister who was unaware of her existence. It wasn't until several decades had passed, and Saya had found Diva in 1883. She didn't even have a proper name, it was Saya who bestowed Diva her name for her beautiful singing. During Joel's seventy-second birthday, Saya let Diva out as a surprise for him. Unfortunately, or perhaps it was fortunate justice, depending on how one looked at it, Joel was killed by Diva for all the years of torment and isolation she was forced to endure. Since that time, Saya had spent almost one hundred and fifty years she fought to put an end to Diva and her chevaliers, as well as the other chiropteran she had created, so she could atone for her mistakes; although over time Saya began to contemplate if Diva was more of a victim than she realized.

Although the information was hard to believe even after what Saya had shown him, Frank had her walk him through the notes as if it was homework. Learning about things such as Saya and Diva being considered queens in the chiropteran family, while chevaliers were considered servants. Chevaliers were created after consuming a queen's blood, making them immortal and unable to age, while leading to the development of super speed, strength, and endurance, and occasionally, they also developed shape-shifting abilities.

Saya even managed to explain the reason she was naked despite only sleeping for three years, it had been awkward for Frank, so he at least deserved to know why he stumbled across her in the buff; her brother Kai thought it would be better for her to sleep without her clothes withering away as she slept. This lead to the million dollar question Frank wanted to know.

"So there is a period where you go to sleep for thirty years and you are awake for about three years, and you require your chevaliers blood to properly wake up…what are you doing awake now?"

"Everyone else couldn't believe it either, do you remember how I told you that Diva and I stabbed each other, but her blood no longer had an effect on me?"

"Um…yeah"

Frank was trying his best not to picture that image.

"Do you remember Julia?"

"Yeah the doctor"

"She told me that it had to do with Diva's blood, something to do with an enzyme"

"An Enzyme?"

Frank went through the folders and the information regarding Saya's biology, in it, he found out about a discovery made years ago about Saya missing or lacking the strength a certain enzyme and the possibilities of a replacement so she would no longer require thirty years sleep.

"Didn't you say that Diva required thirty years of sleep as well?"

"Yes, although I would always wake up before she did"

"So that would mean she must have had the same problem you had with missing a cell, or the structure of it wasn't complete or something like that, perhaps when you both mixed blood it gave you the strength you needed to wake up"

"Yes, that's what Julia said. She told me based on what she observed that the odds of me being awake prematurely were 50/50"

"What does that mean?"

"Meaning there was a chance I should still be asleep even with the enzyme"

"Well, I guess you're lucky then"

Frank and Saya got up and gathered their things as they made their way out of the crypt.

"Julia isn't sure if this is permanent"

Saya sounded a bit discouraged. She thought about how she might not be able to see her family and friends for a long time. Frank could sense how upset she was, so he did what he could and tried to comfort her.

"Listen, I'm sorry about everything you've been through, but this might be a new beginning for you, don't be sad"

Frank was trying to reassure Saya and help her. Even though he had not been through a fraction of what she had been through, he knew what it was like to feel helpless and alone.

"But what if, what if I'm overcome by my need for sleep again; what if this is just temporary"

"Then you should start living your life now. If this is your only chance then you should take it, don't think about the past, think about how you can have everything you fought for now"

"I, I should"

"You've been given a miracle. I saw how happy you were to see your brother, I could tell how much you both love each other, and I know you have friends who care about you as well. Now that you have been given this opportunity, you can have the life you deserved to have"

Saya's eyes started to water, and as she cried a little she also smiled, she was overwhelmed but she was happier than she had ever been.

"You're right, you're absolutely right"

Saya embraced Frank, holding him close to express her gratitude for helping her have a positive outlook on everything. After they left the crypt, Frank walked Saya to the same bus station he helped get her to that night.

"So um, I guess I'll see you around, thank you for everything"

"It's okay, I'm glad I could help you. Say Saya um…do you uh…do you wanna hang out sometime? Like if you're ever in New York? Plus I'm not leaving Japan yet"

"You really want to hang out?"

"Of course! Um…would that be alright?"

Saya saw that the bus was coming; deep down she was grateful that someone like Frank had come around, and although she wanted to spend time with Kai, the twins and everyone else, she knew that Frank had become an important part of her life.

"Of course, believe it or not, it's not that hard for me to travel"

"Cool! I'll see you around soon hopefully"

"I'll see you, thanks again for everything, take care Frank"

Saya smiled as they waved goodbye to each other, before boarding her bus back to the ramen shop. Not only was she ready to start the life she wanted, but she was ready to start the life she wanted; with a new friend.


	6. Chapter 6 - Part 2

February 14th, 2010, it was Valentines Day, Frank and Saya were out in New York City spending time with one another. Ever since they had first encountered each other back in Okinawa they had become close friends. In fact, out of everyone Saya knew, it was Frank who's company she enjoyed the most.

Saya knew Frank had personal problems like everyone else, but she looked past them and found him to be a funny, kind, and sweet person, while Frank found Saya to be a beautiful person both inside and out, she had also matured quickly since waking up. They had decided to come back to New York City for some sightseeing, but Saya had another reason to come back, to finally revisit The Metropolitan Opera House Memorial dig. It was there Saya had ended Diva's reign and prevented her from creating a world full of chiropteran. They were almost there, as they continued walking along the fresh snow on the ground and discussing more details of their lives along the way.

"So what was California like?"

"It was nice, at first. I wound up only staying for a couple of months. Something happened, things didn't work out"

"Why did you leave?"

"It was, well…"

Frank wasn't sure if he wanted to discuss what happened in California.

"Do you want to talk about it? You know you can tell me anything"

"There was…there was a…um…there was this girl, a girl I loved and things well…"

Frank wanted to tell Saya about what had happened in his past but he felt that compared to what she had gone through it was nothing.

"What Frank, what happened with you and this girl?"

"You know what, it's really not important; it's not something I feel comfortable talking about"

"Are you sure? You can tell me"

"It's fine. Look, we're here"

Frank and Saya arrived at the place where the Opera House once stood. Saya seemed deep in thought, while Frank felt like he needed to comment on it.

"So this is where it all happened"

"It's not something that anyone should look back on"

Saya tried to smile for Frank, but could only give off a somber expression as her mind wandered.

"Diva…she only wanted a family"

"What do you mean?"

"I and so many others thought Diva was the enemy but in the end, she just wanted a family, to be loved; I don't think she ever intentionally wanted to hurt anyone"

Saya looked on at the site, reality was almost a blur as she continued to reflect on past moments.

"I know what she did to Riku, it was horrible, unforgivable. But if there had been a way to have gotten through to her then maybe it…"

Saya could go no further with the memories of her younger adopted brother, Riku. He had a run in with Diva, who consumed his blood to the point of near death, but Saya saved his life by forcing him to become her chevalier. But what tormented Saya the most even to this day, was how Diva had twisted the knife further when she violated and murdered Riku, all so she could bear his children, her daughters; to have a family. Frank knew the story of Riku, a sweet and innocent boy whose life was cut short, he didn't want to get Saya upset by revisiting such a tragic memory.

"If being here is upsetting you we can leave"

"There's…There's something I have to tell you, Frank, but…but can we…"

Saya had trouble finishing her sentence as tears started to form in her eyes.

"It's okay, you can tell me whatever you want"

"Would it be okay if we talked somewhere else?"

"Of course, it's no problem at all"

Frank hailed a taxi and decided to find a nice quiet area in Central Park. On the way there in the cab Saya tried to hold back her tears, as Frank sat next to her he had his arm around her shoulder, he gently rubbed her back trying his best to comfort her.

Frank and Saya finally arrived at Central Park, they thanked the cab driver and paid him along with a tip. As they walked through the park Frank kept his arm around Saya's shoulder, keeping her close until they found a place away from everyone else where they could sit down and talk. When they made themselves comfortable, Saya finally opened up about the one person who meant the most to her, the one person who she felt she had put through more pain than anyone else, but most of all; the one person who not only loved her but who she truly and deeply loved.

"I haven't told you everything"

"What do you mean?"

"About me, there's…there's someone I left out because it was too painful for me to talk about, that day when I told you who I was, and showed you those files and that journal. I…"

Saya's eyes began to tear up as she tried to finish.

"…I deliberately took out some of the files and didn't show you information concerning someone I knew, it was too painful to talk about but I…I can't just forget him, I don't want to"

Saya finally let's go and started to cry.

"Who? Who don't you want to forget?"

"Are you mad at me because I didn't tell you everything?"

"No of course not, I completely understand, but if you want to tell me now you know you can"

"His name was…Hagi"

"Tell me about Hagi, was he important to you?"

"In 1870 Hagi was twelve years old when he was brought to the zoo to be a servant. I wasn't the way I am now, I used to be spoiled and selfish, I treated him horribly. One day I told him I was sick of him and that he should just go back to wherever he came from, but he told me that he didn't have any choice because Joel had bought him, and then he, he started crying. I felt so bad for him so I tried to comfort him, to let him know that this was his home and asked if there was anything I could do for him"

"You did the right thing then"

"Several years had passed; we had become friends, on Joel's birthday…on the day that I…let Diva out"

"Did Diva do something to Hagi?"

"No; but I did. After I had, let Diva out to surprise Joel, me and Hagi went over to this cliff, on the edge of this cliff, there were these flowers I wanted to give to Joel, and Hagi…he didn't want me to go so he, he tried to get them himself and he…"

Saya's voice choked up from being upset. Frank found himself feeling her pain, his eyes started to water himself because he could sense next what she was about to say.

"It's okay you don't need to say it"

"It doesn't end there, it's not even close to the end of everything that happened. I went down to the bottom of the cliff and saw he split open his skull, there was so much blood, I didn't know what else to do until I remembered… I remembered that Joel always had to give me regular amounts of blood so I, oh god, I was so stupid, so stupid"

"Listen, it's okay"

"No, it isn't. I gave him some of my blood and I stopped time for him…I stopped time for him and made him my chevalier. But the pain didn't stop there, during the Vietnam War when I went on that rampage. I hurt Hagi, I cut off his hand and, disfigured it, turning it into a permanent claw. I caused him so much pain and he was never the same after that. But it all ended that night at the opera house"

Saya was unable to hold back her tears any longer.

"That night at the Metropolitan I was about to kill Diva's babies, you know, the two twins you met back at Okinawa. I made Hagi promise me that once I had killed Diva, he would then…kill me, and then himself. But that night he disobeyed me because he…he told me how had always loved me and wanted me to live on"

All Frank could do was comfort Saya while she vented.

"I loved him so much! I couldn't believe it had taken him so long to tell me! After all the pain I caused him! I caused him to plunge off a cliff! I cut off his hand in Vietnam! And even after all of that, all that suffering he gave his life for me!"

Saya poured her heart out to Frank, releasing over one hundred years of guilt and regret.

"Earlier Hagi had fought Amshel and he thought he killed him, but he came back and tried to take the twins, so Hagi took my sword coated with my blood and stabbed Amshel with it, but then Amshel he…he…he impaled Hagi! And the whole building came down on him! All the pain I caused him, all the horror and he still loved me…and now he's dead and it's all my fault!"

Saya finally broke down, covering her face with her hands, crying hysterically. Frank held her close to him, gently rubbing her back and holding her head against his shoulder as she held on tightly, letting everything out.

"It's okay, it's okay"

For five minutes Saya cried before it slowed down, finally, she was beginning to calm down.

"Before he died, he said…Nankurunaisa…I will always love you, Saya"

Saya was finally calm and at peace with Frank.

"What does Nankurunaisa mean?"

"Live for today, but look forward to tomorrow…live for today"

Saya let go of Frank, looking him in the eyes.

"What?"

"Your eyes, I never noticed it before but, they're so pretty, just like, just like Hagi's"

After hearing Saya's comment about him, Frank realized that he wasn't the only one who felt something. As he took a hand to Saya's shoulder, both of them moved in closer, closing their eyes, until finally, they kissed. Saya had kissed before but Frank had not, it was incredible, astounding, liberating; he was actually receiving his very first kiss, their lips parting and connecting as Saya's sadness evaporated and both of their emotions swelled during what could be considered to be a beautiful and intimate moment.

When it was over all they could do was stare at one another, it was at that moment Frank let out the words he had wanted to let out for a long time.

"I love you"

"You…you love me?"

"I love you, I love you, Saya, for the longest time I've wanted to tell you how much I love you, how I want to be with you, how I want to be yours forever, Saya I…I want to be your chevalier"

Saya was in awe over Frank's request, but completely against it.

"But Frank I couldn't, you would never age, you would never need to eat or sleep"

Saya tried to convince Frank that this was not something he wanted.

"So what if I never age, and will I really miss eating and sleeping?"

"But, but what about your family, and your friends, what will they think?"

"I don't care what they think, they'll understand and even if they don't I'll make them understand; whatever the process is to become a chevalier I'll do it"

"But you don't understand, the process is painful, it's the most painful thing any person could endure"

"Saya look at me, I don't care, any amount of pain is worth it because when the pain is over, we can be together; forever"

"You want to be with me forever?"

"Yes, Saya please…"

Frank held Saya's hands and got down on one knee.

"Will you let me be your chevalier?"

Saya found herself smiling and crying tears of joy, the fact that she had found someone who loved her so much that he was willing to do anything for her.

"Yes!"

Saya could see Frank light up with happiness when she gave her answer.

"I would never force you to become my chevalier, but if that is what you want then yes Frank yes! I love you!"

Saya and Frank got up and embraced each other. She still felt horrible about what she had put Hagi through, and never wanted to put anyone through it ever again, but she knew that Hagi would have wanted her to live on and be happy.

"I promise you, Frank, that I will do whatever I can to make you happy; I will never hurt you"

"Thank you…Thank you so much"

When they were done they went to leave the park, holding hands. Although Saya was still somewhat sad, she was happy knowing that she was with Frank. It was incredible how much had changed in a day. It felt like nothing could go wrong, but feelings and plans always have a way of changing when it comes to people.


	7. Chapter 7

April 10th, 2010, Frank knew things had become complicated between him and Saya, but he thought those times were over. Frank heard the shower turn off, the silence indicating that Saya was drying off. He heard the door open and the small steps of her bare feet walking across the floor.

"Um…Saya, are you done?"

Saya came out in a red baggy t-shirt and some shorts, as she took a seat next to Frank on the couch once more, continuing where they left off.

"Thanks, I really needed a cold shower. So Frank, what's been going on?"

Frank was quiet, Saya spoke up again.

"Frank, please"

"I got fired from my job"

Frank blurted out what was on his mind.

"What?"

"They fired me, they um, they said I had been slacking off and harassing other employees, even though that's not true"

Saya couldn't believe it, she had always hated the place Frank worked at, but now she truly had a reason to despise it.

"You never needed that place"

"But I needed the money"

"I'll help you out"

"Saya no"

"Frank, it's okay, it's just until you get back on your feet"

Frank didn't want to trouble Saya any further, but he couldn't lose his apartment either, so he reluctantly agreed. Frank started to think about what had been keeping him awake, it wasn't just the stress of losing his job.

Saya noticed something was off on the side of Frank's head, she brushed his hair aside and saw stitches that were somewhat healed, somehow she had missed it.

"What happened to you?"

"I fell down the stairs at work, I, oh god…"

"Frank, it's okay, you're under a lot of stress. Just tell me what happened"

"I was at work…I fell down some stairs and hit my head, I was in the hospital for two days"

"You were in the hospital!?" When did this happen!? Why didn't you tell me!?"

"I didn't wanna worry you"

"Frank…"

"Shortly after that, I was fired. They gave me a months salary and said they thought it was in my best interest to go elsewhere to prevent further harm to myself"

"That's horrible"

"What is wrong with me? I can hardly sleep anymore. Ever since then I've been getting headaches, having nightmares. I'm afraid to be alone in my own apartment, I'm afraid to close my eyes"

Frank started to break down, everything was going badly for him, even mentally. Saya hugged Frank as she gently rocked him back and forth, rubbing his head softly and calming him down.

"I'm sorry…"

"You have nothing to be sorry for Frank, you just need some rest"

"But I'm afraid to go to sleep"

"Then let me help you. I'll stay here to help you feel safe, and watch over you, so you can get some well-deserved sleep. Now come on, let's get you into bed"

"Saya I don't wanna burden you anymore"

"Frank, it's okay, come on"

Saya helped Frank up from the couch and guided him towards his room, he was clearly too tired to argue as he crawled into bed. Saya sat on the edge of Frank's bed right next to him as he laid down on his side facing away from her, she gently rubbed his back while quietly talking to him.

"That's it, rest. I know you've been having trouble sleeping, but it's okay, you can take a nap; I'm not going anywhere"

Frank felt relaxed as he curled up into bed and closed his eyes, finally drifting off to sleep.

"When you wake up, we'll talk about everything"

Saya cooed and shushed Frank until he peacefully fell asleep.


	8. Chapter 8

February 14th, 2010, Frank had gone back with Saya to her hotel room. It felt good to get their jackets and boots off and get comfortable while they celebrated the beginning of their new life. As part of the celebration, they had a fabulous dinner together. Well, Chinese takeout. It was about as fabulous as they could get. Frank opened up one of his fortune cookies as Saya continued eating her dinner.

"What does your fortune say?"

"It says; wish you a good journey, a fortune of things to come I guess"

Frank and Saya sat there for a few minutes, both of them either looking around the room or back at one another. Finally, Saya decided to break the silence.

"Frank listen, I know that you have thought long and hard about all of this but I need to know; is this what you really want?"

"Yes"

"Once you go through with this you can never go back to a normal life, no more needing to eat, no more needing to sleep, no more aging, are you absolutely sure?"

"Saya, the normal life you talk about, I don't wanna go back to it. A life without you is nothing"

"Okay; let's get started"

Saya brought Frank into the bedroom, as they sat across from one another in bed, she could sense he was extremely anxious. Saya was well past the days of being innocent, she decided that instead of trying to put Frank at ease emotionally, maybe she could try physically. After all, they were going to be together. She had never tried to be flirtatious or alluring before, and although she was wearing a t-shirt and sweats which weren't the most enticing things to wear, it was still worth a shot. Saya pushed Frank down onto the bed and got on top of him.

"Whoa"

Frank was caught off guard.

"Is this, okay?"

Saya was concerned.

"Yes, I mean, when we're done are we gonna…you know…"

Saya caught on to what Frank was saying, causing her to blush a little.

"Oh, well, do you want to?"

"I, I've never um…I'm new to a lot of this, not just the whole becoming a chevalier thing"

"I've also never…lets just take it slow, see what happens"

Saya smiled and ran her hand through Frank's hair.

"Okay. You know I really like how you've grown your hair out. You look like a rock star, I mean in a good way like, you're really attractive"

"Oh, thank you"

Saya was flattered by Frank's complements.

"Yeah, I mean like, it's funny how you look so young, but, you're so much older than me"

"Does that make you uncomfortable?"

Saya felt concerned.

"No no it's just, no it, it doesn't; you're incredibly beautiful"

Saya was happy that Frank thought she was attractive and beautiful, she hoped to use that to help calm his nerves. She leaned down and started kissing him, occasionally they stopped to look and smile at one another. Frank was certainly at ease emotionally, but in the heat of the moment he reached down too low and accidentally grabbed Saya a bit too personally from behind. Saya let out a gasp, Frank was afraid that he might have overstepped his boundaries, so he stopped everything.

"Oh my god, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to touch you like that"

Saya could see Frank's uneasiness and knew he didn't mean any harm.

"It's okay, I understand. You were just caught up in the moment"

"You're not mad at me?"

"Of course not, I just wasn't expecting you to grab me like that. But don't worry, it's okay"

"Maybe we should move things along"

Frank was afraid things would continue to get awkward for both of them.

"Yes; it's time"

Saya took a cloth out from her pocket and began rolling it up.

"What's that for?"

"In order to become my chevalier, you have to consume my blood. I've told you already that the process is painful, so once you're done taking in my blood, I need to gag you with this so you don't scream too loud"

"I understand"

Frank was understandably nervous.

"It's okay, I'll be right here"

"I know you will"

Saya took out her knife and went to make a cut in her arm when Frank had another idea.

"Saya wait, I was wondering if I could ask you for something if that's okay"

"What is it?"

"You said you had fangs right?"

"Yes I do"

"Do you think maybe you could, I don't know, bite down into your arm and give me your blood through a, through a kiss? Please?"

Saya smiled when she heard Frank's request. She closed her eyes, reopening them to reveal a bright red glow illuminating from her irides.

"Holy crap…"

Frank was caught off guard in a good way.

Saya slowly ran her hands up and down Frank's chest, smiling and batting her eyes as she tried to be seductive, she could tell he was infatuated with her eyes. She shut her eyes once more and opened her mouth, revealing her fangs as she slowly bit down into her arm and sucked out some blood. All that ran through Frank's mind was how unbelievably sexy Saya was at that moment. After taking in a mouthful of blood, Saya used her hand to close Frank's eyes; as she guided her mouth towards his to finally deliver the kiss of life.

"This is it, this is finally it"

CRASH! A window broke, followed by footsteps. Saya and Frank looked at the door with alarm, Saya gulped down her blood and got off of Frank, slowly making her way towards the door.

"I think someone's broken in!"

"Calm down okay, I'm going to go check it out. Stay here"

"Saya wait…"

Frank knew Saya could defend herself, but he was still afraid for her safety.

"Just stay here okay, I'm going to close the door behind me. Don't come out until I say it's okay"

Saya opened the door and crept through, before closing it behind her.

Frank couldn't believe this was happening. Why now of all nights, why now. He was so close, and who would want to break into a hotel room? How could they? They were on the ninth floor of the hotel. Frank's mind was interrupted by the sound of a gasp, followed by crying.

"Saya? Saya, what's going on? Saya answer me!"

Frank yelled out trying to see if Saya was okay.

"Frank! Come in here! Hurry!"

Frank went to answer Saya's calls. He quickly opened the door to see Saya crying tears of joy in the arms of a tall gorgeous man, he stood there confused.

"Frank! It's Hagi! Hagi's alive Frank! Oh, Hagi!"

Saya held Hagi close, not wanting to let go for fear of losing him again as she cried tears of happiness.

"It's okay Saya; I'm back, I'm here for you"

Saya loosened her grip and used both of her hands to bring Hagi's face closer to hers, their faces practically touching.

"Hagi, I've wanted to tell you this for so long…I love you"

Saya kissed Hagi, both of them locked in that one moment like the night at the Opera House. Except with one difference, it wasn't Kai who bore witness to it, but Frank.

Frank wanted to feel happy for them, but all he could feel inside was pain. At that moment it felt like Saya had plunged her hand into his chest and ripped out his heart. To Saya and Hagi, it was like Frank wasn't even there, but he was there, and all he wanted to do was crawl into a corner and never come out again as he stood there and watched as his love, his Saya, was slowly taken away from him.

Frank couldn't take anymore, he left the hotel room and stood out in the hallway, finally letting out his true feelings as he cried. He wallowed in sadness for a minute, as frustration, anger, and confusion set in for Frank. One thing was abundantly clear; things were about to get worse for him, much worse.


	9. Chapter 9

April 10th, 2010, Frank woke up an hour later, he spent a few seconds getting his head together until he realized Saya was asleep. He remembered she said she wasn't going anywhere but didn't think she would actually stick around, let alone fall asleep. Frank gently nudged Saya and said her name to try and wake her up as best as he could without force, after about a minute Saya woke up.

"Oh, I guess I dozed off"

"Are you okay?"

"Yes…no, I'm not okay"

"What's wrong?"

Saya took a minute to get her head straight having just woken up, after that she spoke up. There was something Frank needed to know; Saya felt it was best to just come out and say it.

"Frank, I'm going to go back to sleep soon, I mean for a while. Julia ran some tests, she determined that I woke up early last year because my sleep schedule was tampered with in Vietnam, she said it will balance itself out soon which means…she doesn't know how much time I have left. I know you've gone through so much, but before I go back to sleep I need to know things are okay between us, I want to make things right, I want to be here for you. Things haven't been the same between us, Frank, you and I both know it. It's because I hurt you, isn't it?"

Frank knew he needed to start being honest.

"Saya all of this started because I screwed up"

"You don't need to be upset about that anymore, and you don't need to project anymore of your mistakes onto yourself to cover up how you actually feel, it's okay if you're mad at me"

Saya was right, Frank was in a sense holding a grudge, but there was more to the story than he was letting on.

"There is so much more to it. It's not something I can explain easily"

"Is this about that girl?"

Frank sat there for a few seconds completely silent, going over what had happened in the past in his head. The only answer he could give Saya was the one he had given her time and time again.

"I don't wanna talk about it"

"Yes you do"

"I don't like forcing things on other people"

"You're not forcing this on me, I want to listen to you"

"I've already talked about her with other people, I just wanna move on"

"But you can't, because whatever happened became a part of you. It's okay, I'm here to listen to you like you listened to me about Hagi"

"What I went through was nothing compared to what you've endured"

"That doesn't matter, you deserve equal opportunity to be heard"

Saya gently took Frank's hand.

"I know when I left you I brought back something you didn't want to think about, tell me what it is"

"But don't you understand, if I hadn't screwed up you wouldn't have had to…"

Frank was interrupted by Saya, she knew he would go on had she not stopped him.

"Frank…please tell me about this girl"

Frank knew he could no longer keep it in, he had to tell her.

"Her name was Callie, we first met online, it was summer of 2008. We spent time getting to know each other, she was extremely friendly. She claimed to have developed a small crush on me even though she was pregnant and had a boyfriend, his name was Taylor. This lead to me developing a crush, and at the time we didn't let it get in the way of us being friends. Later on, she told me that she had lost her child and that Taylor was moving away, and to top it all off her best friend who was an old love interest, a guy named Devon cut ties with her"

Frank stopped for a minute to collect his thoughts.

"I was up all night on the phone with her trying to comfort her, she told me that she wasn't that hurt because she liked me more; it was that night I fell in love with her. Day in and day out all I could think about was her, how much I loved her, so right after high school, I saved and saved for two months until I was able to move out to California to be with her"

Frank stopped for a few seconds, so Saya jumped in and helped Frank continue.

"So what happened? Where did everything go wrong?"

"So much went wrong. When I arrived, she never met up with me, she kept me at a distance. Later on, I found out from her that she got back together with Devon, so that was it between me and her. There was a point after that where we still didn't meet up in person, but she never gave me the space I needed to heal and she would always talk about him online or on the phone, I was upset for a while so Devon blocked me from talking to her. I was so angry, but I wanted her back so badly. I had no one, I was all alone in California; so I went crawling back to her"

Frank stopped a second before continuing.

"She still wouldn't meet up with me because she claimed Devon might get jealous, how she was his goddess, how he didn't want any guy within twenty feet of her. The whole time I never got to actually see her, I was practically all alone living a run down apartment in California trying to get by with what little I had. I couldn't even remember the last time I had more than one meal a day at that point"

Frank started to look visibly upset and Saya could see that. Just as he had felt when Saya shared her story and all of the stories of her past, she started to feel upset over what Frank was saying, not because she didn't want to hear it, but because she could feel the hurt coming from Frank.

"This continued on for a while until I felt nothing. No love, no hate, just nothing. I was all alone, no friends, I hardly spoke to my family. I had nothing, and I didn't care anymore. I was just, numb. One day she calls me, she was so happy to talk to me. She told me she broke up with Devon because she still liked me. The only problem was I didn't love her anymore, so she manipulated me into loving her again. Even though I knew it wasn't fair, I had been alone for so long, and she used that as ammunition. She fed me one false promise after another, telling me we would meet up soon. I went from feeling nothing to wanting to feel love from her again, but it didn't last long"

Frank found it hard to continue but he knew that his story wasn't finished. Although Saya was upset from Frank's story, she started to feel anger from how Callie was turning out to be such a heartless person.

"She went back to playing mind games, she told me that she and Devon had gotten back together. I told her how I was happy for her, but I also expressed how upset I was because I was alone where I was living. She told me to just let it go and that I was obsessing over nothing, how what I was doing was stupid, how obsessing over nothing was making me miserable"

Saya rubbed Frank's back to try and relax him.

"Go on"

"I got angry at her because I felt like I wasn't being treated fairly…so she said she didn't want to hear from me ever again"

Frank's eyes finally begin to water.

"Frank, I'm so sorry that happened to you. She should have never turned her back on you for getting angry"

"You don't understand, the worst part about all of this was; she lied to me"

"What do you mean?"

"After I scraped every penny I had together to move back here, I found out several months later from Devon himself that they were never together. She broke my heart and abandoned me even though she promised she wouldn't, all because she wanted to hurt me; and I deserve it…I deserved all of it because I'm an idiot…"

"No! No Frank! No!"

Frank finally broke down and started crying as he poured more hate onto himself.

"I deserved to be hurt by her, I deserve to be alone for being so stupid and worthless"

"That isn't true! You're a wonderful person with a kind heart. She never deserved to have someone like you in her life, you deserve so much better and you deserve love"

"How can you say that, how can you say that after what I did? I took Hagi's flower, this whole time you thought he was dead, it's my fault. How can you still say I deserve love?"

"Because…because I love you, I love you because you helped me, because you're my friend…and…and I'm the one who should be sorry"

Saya broke down and cried, she felt horrible about leaving Frank after everything he had been through, to force him back into a dark place he tried to move on from, but it wasn't just the incident that was upsetting her.

"Frank, I'm scared. I don't want to go back to sleep. I can't, it's not fair, it's not fair, it's not…"

Saya was afraid of going back to sleep and there was nothing she could do to prevent it. Saya felt hopeless, the only thing she could do was cry. Frank was still upset, but he had to do something.

"Saya it's okay. I'm here for you; don't be afraid"

Frank pulled himself together, pushing his pain and personal feelings aside as he put a hand on Saya's shoulder and tried to comfort her; it was time for him to step up and be a good friend once again.


	10. Chapter 10

February 20th, 2010, it had been a week since Hagi's return, and things started to go downhill for everyone. Saya had found out about Hagi's flower, the flower that indicated Hagi was still alive, the same flower Frank had taken by accident and was planning on surprising Saya with as a gift. Everyone was together in Saya's hotel room, as Saya showed a side of herself that Frank had never seen before.

"How could you do this!? This whole time I thought Hagi was dead!"

Frank stood there feeling like a fool, holding the flower and blue ribbon.

"I didn't know what it was for; it was an accident"

"You don't just take stuff like that! It was near my crypt! Why would you take something that was supposed to be on someone's grave!?"

Saya was getting even angrier at Frank's incompetence.

"I didn't know it was a grave at the time, I just liked how it looked. Please, Saya, don't be mad at me, I'm sorry, I'm really sorry"

Frank pleaded with Saya.

"This whole time I thought Hagi was dead, I know I told you how I felt but you didn't actually know. All the things we went through, and that night, do you know what it's like watching the person you love get crushed under a building!? To think they're dead!? How could you take the only clue that showed he was alive!?"

Saya was demanding some kind of a better answer.

"I never meant to hurt you…it was an accident…I'm sorry…"

Saya could only take so much from Frank before she finally lost it, she went over to Frank and slapped him hard across the face before taking the rose.

"Mistake or not, you caused me pain because of what you did. I love Hagi, do you understand that?…do us a favor and just leave"

"What do you mean leave?"

"Frank, I don't want to see or hear from you ever again"

Frank was stunned at Saya's words.

"Saya wait, you, you promised me…please don't leave me"

Saya opened the door to her room, queuing Frank to leave. He stood there, the pain in his heart somehow outweighing the pain of being smacked. Frank looked up at Hagi with tears in his eyes as he tried to make out words.

"Hagi, please…please explain to her this was a mistake, please"

Frank tried to see if Hagi would reason with her, but could tell by his emotionless expression that he didn't care.

"Saya please…"

"Get out; I'm not going to ask you again"

Frank slowly walked out with the door slamming behind him, as he exited the hotel he tried his best not to cry. Walking around New York City in an upset daze, he made his way to central park, to the very same place where Frank told Saya how much he loved her. He sat on the bench all alone, before finally crying.

Frank was crushed, but he was also hurt, angry, never had he hated so many things. He hated taking that flower, he hated Hagi for coming back, he hated Saya for rejecting him, and he hated ever meeting Saya in the first place. All he wanted to do was forget about her and move on, but like a lot of the things in his past, he knew he had a long road ahead of him.


	11. Chapter 11

March 6th, 2010, one month had gone by since Saya had stopped talking to Frank, all he could do was continue on with his life as best as he could. When he wasn't dwelling on Saya and her boyfriend in anger, he occasionally found himself missing her. Despite that he made no attempt to contact Saya, he could try and explain himself but he figured it would be pointless. Frank thought it was over, or so he presumed.

Frank worked as a janitor, and although he hated every minute of it, he needed the money for rent and utilities. If it were up to him he would quit, he almost had several times but was too afraid to make that step. So for now, even though he wasn't content with it, mopping floors and scrubbing toilets was what he had to do to support himself. After finishing his work, he was the last one out of the building as he signed out and took the last of the trash bags with him. There was some slight rain when he locked the entrance door and brought the trash bags to the side of the building. When he dropped them off he noticed someone was standing there waiting for him, someone he wasn't ever expecting to see, it was Hagi.

"Hello Frank"

"What do you want?"

Frank was obviously not too happy to see Hagi.

"We need to talk"

Hagi was in his usual emotionless manner.

"I have nothing I wanna talk about with you"

Frank went to leave but Hagi quickly walked in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.

"Saya misses you"

"I'm sure she does"

"She has known for a while that it was a mistake but has been afraid to talk to you"

"Oh, and what is she afraid of? The fact that I might get upset right? So it's okay that she got angry at me but I can't get angry at her, right, of course"

"Listen to me, Saya still cares about you; she has always cared…"

Frank interrupted Hagi, having had enough of listening to him.

"Oh, shut up! Saya still cares about me!? Is that why she yelled at me!? Is that why she smacked me and kicked me out of her life!? She doesn't care about me! You know why!? Because she has you! She made it clear that she doesn't need me anymore! Just, just leave me alone, okay? Please"

Hagi tried to stop Frank from walking away again.

"Oh my god what do you want from me"

"Saya always loved you, I know this"

"And what makes you think that?"

Hagi knew it was time to share a secret he kept from Frank, one Saya didn't even know about until he came back into her life a month ago.

"Because I saw you both together, I could see how much you loved each other"

"What are you talking about…"

Frank suddenly came to a realization, Hagi knew about them the entire time and was watching them.

"You, you knew about us this entire time? You knew and you said nothing?"

Frank's temper started to rise again.

"You knew? You knew!? Why didn't you say anything!? Why didn't you come out and tell Saya you were alive!?"

"It's complicated"

"Complicated? Complicated!? What was so complicated about telling Saya you were alive!?"

Hagi fell silent.

"What did you realize at the last minute that a god damn flower isn't a clear indication that you were alive because anyone can come and take it!? Were you hiding out for seven months trying to figure something else out!? What could possibly have been going on that was complicated!? What could have been so complicated that you couldn't tell Saya you were alive until the last second!?"

Hagi remained silent as Frank lost his patiences.

"I'm waiting!…why won't you give me an answer!?"

All Hagi could do was stand there as Frank continued to go off on him.

"You have changed Frank, I suppose I have myself to blame"

"Shut up! I'm so sick of trying to be good and getting hurt! Is it so much to ask to be treated a little better? Don't I deserve to be loved? I had finally found someone, and YOU decided to sit back and wait until we got close before you took her away from me!"

Frank began to break down crying, his voice hoarse from all of his screaming.

"You could have saved me all of this heartache, but you didn't! Well, guess what, whatever the hell was so complicated; I'm not interested in hearing it. I'm sick of this, I'm not doing this anymore; have a nice eternity"

Frank walked around Hagi to leave, Hagi knew he may never get another chance, he had to speak up.

"I didn't speak up because I wanted you both to be together"

Frank stop dead in his tracks and turned around to face Hagi.

"That night when Saya woke up and you came to her aid I was there, I sensed that she was waking up, so I came to her to find you helping her. I didn't have enough strength at the time to protect her, but I felt she was in good hands. The next day when you returned to the crypt and she explained everything to you, you didn't care that she wasn't exactly human; you still wanted to be her friend. I knew she hadn't forgotten about me but didn't tell you, but I thought at that moment when you held her close and reassured her of a better life…maybe she was better off with you…and I was right"

Hagi stopped for a second to find the right words before continuing.

"For seven months you have made Saya happier than she had been in the last one hundred and fifty years of blood, pain, despair, and death. Every time she told you about something from her past, you would find a way to help her feel better. I didn't want to interfere, she deserves to be happy, but that day in central park…I knew I had to stop you from making a terrible mistake"

Hagi's deadpan expression appeared to shift into an upset one.

"Please, Frank, please understand I never meant to hurt you. The life of a chevalier, it's not one for you. Although I gave my life to Saya and never regretted becoming her chevalier, it is because my own family abandoned me. But you have so much in your life, your family and your friends; I know that you need them as much as they need you. I know how much it hurts Frank…but please understand…I never meant to hurt you. I know I can never change what I've done but I'm…I'm sorry. Please…please forgive me"

Frank found himself feeling horrible for the things he said; he put a hand on Hagi's shoulders.

"I forgive you, okay? I forgive you. And I'm sorry that I shouted and said all those things to you"

Hagi stood up, placing a hand on Frank's shoulder.

"I understand, I forgive you as well"

After things calmed down, Frank tried to get his head straight and figure out what to do next.

"So um…now what?"

"Now we must make things right"

"Alright, I'll call her first thing in the mor…"

Hagi took hold of Frank, pulling him close and sprouting bat wings.

"What the fu…"

Before Frank could finish his sentence, him and Hagi took off for Okinawa. Unfortunately, it was far from a smooth trip. Frank was hundreds of feet in the air, the shock of being so high up moving at such velocity, and the fact there was less oxygen in the sky caused him to black out. When he awoke, his vision was blurry, he could feel himself lying down as a small hand rubbed his head. His vision cleared, it was Saya. It felt like a dream, both the combination of not seeing her in a month and waking up from a blackout lead him to question for a few seconds if Saya was actually there, but she was.

"Hey, your awake"

Frank tried to sit up, only to be gently pushed down by Saya as she took a hand to his cheek.

"Don't get up, rest"

Frank took Saya's advice, he knew he wasn't in any condition to argue, although he did feel like Hagi physically taking him all the way to Okinawa was a bit much.

"You know it probably would have been easier for me to call you"

"I'm sorry, I wanted to see you again"

"It's fine"

After Frank collected himself, he and Saya began to repair the damage that had been done.

"Saya I'm sorry, I'm so sorry for what I did"

Saya continued to caress Frank's head while he laid down, comforting him.

"You don't need to apologize anymore, I know you made a mistake. You didn't know what that flower was for, you couldn't possibly have known. It still hurts, but you're too important to stay angry at. I want you to be a part of my life, like Hagi, Kai, and all the others; so I forgive you"

"Thank you, I missed you…"

Saya leaned in and hugged Frank, he was still somewhat weak from the trip, but he managed to get his arms around her and return the affection.

"Tomorrow I'll get you a plane ride home, for now, you can stay here. It's so good to have you back Frank. I'm so happy everything worked out"

"Yeah; it did…"

Frank tried to cover up sounding unsure, but he couldn't help but feel things were not reconciled on his end. Sure enough, things were never the same between them. So after some time had passed, Saya knew she truly had to make things right.


	12. Chapter 12 - Part 3

April 10th, 2010, Frank held Saya close to him, they had become such close good friends but had been torn apart by several misunderstandings. And now Saya wanted to fix everything, to mend what was broken before she succumbed to the inevitable, she never wanted to lose him ever again.

"Oh Frank, I'm sorry I said all of those things to you and yelled at you. I'm sorry I hit you. I'm sorry I tried to kick you out of my life, but most of all; I'm sorry it took me so long to give you the apology you deserve. I'm so sorry about everything. You were always such a good friend, Please forgive me, please Frank, I don't want you to hate me. Not when we could be having fun and hanging out before I…please Frank. I know how much I hurt you, I want to make up for it…maybe this could be a start"

Saya let go of Frank and looked him in the eyes, she gave him a big kiss in the same spot she hit him.

Frank sat there as he took it all in, before finding the right words to say.

"You're right, you were wrong for what you did. But you also forgave me a long time ago for what I did. So I…I forgive you…I forgive you for everything"

Frank wiped the tears from Saya's eyes, as he did this he reached over and took something that was sitting on top the drawer near his bed, it was the fortune he got from the cookie that night in the hotel.

"Wish you a good journey"

Saya read the fortune Frank got at the hotel.

"You know Saya you didn't have to do all of this, you didn't need to come over and keep me company while I was tired or anything like that"

"I know, but I wanted to do this. I knew I needed to be here, but I wasn't aware things were this bad for you. I wish you had told me what happened to you, I can't believe you spent two days in the hospital and chose to keep it to yourself. Me and my family have been in New York this entire month, you should have called me or Kai when you were in the hospital. And then losing your job? Getting unjustifiably fired? Frank, I would have been there for you"

"Saya it's okay"

Saya interrupted Frank, she wasn't going to let his modesty get in the way of what was right.

"No it isn't, Frank; come here"

Saya opened her arms and reached out for Frank, as he scooted closer she held him close as she continued to talk to him.

"Whenever I'm sad my family and friends would give me a big hug and it helps me feel better. Please, Frank, let me know if there's anything I can do for you; I want to continue to make things right"

Their hallmark moment was put to a screeching halt thanks to Saya's trademark. As Saya's stomach growled she blushed and went to hide under the covers. Frank couldn't help but find her adorable at that moment.

"Come on, its okay, don't be embarrassed"

Saya came out from underneath the blanket giggling at her embarrassing hunger.

"Wanna order out?"

"Do I!?"

Saya's excitement for food was an understatement.

"I'll go get the menus and we'll decide what to order"

"After we order you wanna watch a movie?"

"Absolutely!"

"When Saya left the room, Frank sat in his bed and thought to himself about everything that had happened between them both, the love and the hate. It was still saddening, hearing that Saya would be going back to sleep. It could be years, decades before he could see her again. Frank knew Saya was heading back to Japan in a day, so he held back his tears, no more would be shed that day. He was determined to make today count and be the friend that Saya needed. But, as it turned out; fate had other plans for Frank and Saya.

Ten minutes had gone by, Frank wasn't sure what Saya was doing.

"Hey, Saya did you find the menus? What's going on out there?…Saya?…Saya?"

Frank left his room and found Saya sleeping on the couch, she must have dozed off again. He quietly approached her and gently shook her, he hoped she wouldn't mind waking up after having two naps in one day.

"Saya come on wake up"

No response, Frank started to grow concerned.

"Saya? Saya…Saya wake up"

Nothing, Frank was beginning to feel uneasy, and it only grew with each passing second.

"Saya? Saya! Saya wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!"

Frank frantically shook Saya and screamed at her for a full minute, nothing, he began to panic.

"No no no no no no no, not now, please not now"

Frank was in full panic mood, this was happening, this was actually happening, he had to do something. He picked Saya up off the couch and raced into the bathroom, gently laying her in the tub. He stood by the faucet, he couldn't believe he was going through with this, but he felt like he had no other choice.

"I'm sorry…"

Frank pulled back and blasted Saya with cold water from the shower, nothing.

"Come on, come on wake up please, oh god…"

He tried desperately to think, maybe he could hit her. Could he, should he, what other options were left. Frank winded up with his open hand, but he couldn't bring himself to strike Saya. He held his hand up, he needed to try and hit her, but he couldn't. Frank balled up his fist and banged on the side of the tub in anger as he screamed, he screamed and screamed hoping that Saya would hear him, he screamed until his throat was sore and his voice was raspy. In the end, there was nothing he could do; Saya's conscious cycle was complete and she had officially entered her hibernation, most likely for a long, long time.

"Oh no, oh no no no no no…"

Frank pulled Saya into his arms, bawling as he held her close, it was like a final blow to him, after everything they both emotionally endured from their misunderstanding. She was asleep, permanently asleep; right as all had been forgiven.

An hour later Hagi returned. Before that Frank had dried off Saya and laid her on the couch, keeping her wrapped up to her neck in a blanket to keep her warm. Hagi sat by Frank on the edge of his bed, a hand on his shoulder as he tried to comfort him. After long minutes of silence, Frank finally spoke up.

"You both knew this would happen, didn't you?"

Hagi was quiet, but he knew the truth.

"Yes"

"You and your secrets; she should have been with her family"

"Saya had already said her farewells to them. This was her final stop. She wanted this"

Frank still felt guilty, even if seeing him was what Saya wished for.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Yes"

"How do you do it? How do you hold it together for three decades over and over and over again? It must be maddening. You love her and…I'm sorry I'm being too personal I…"

Hagi cut in when Frank tried to apologize.

"It's okay. I hold onto the love I feel for her, love and hope"

"Hope?"

"Hope that the day will come where time will no longer keep us apart. For now, you must hold onto hope as well"

Frank sniffled and cried as he nodded in agreement.

"So what happens next?"

"I shall take her back to Okinawa, to the Miyagusuku crypt, where she will rest until it is her time to awaken"

Frank understood what had to be done, but he wanted one more thing.

"Can I see her just one more time? Please?"

"Of course"

Frank exited his room and went over to Saya on the couch, kneeling next to her as he rubbed her head. Saya looked so peaceful, helping Frank hold onto the thought that maybe he helped her find the peace she needed before her long nap, but it wasn't enough to push back his sadness as he continued crying. He knew she couldn't hear him, but he still whispered reassurance in her ear, hoping somehow, maybe, it would get through to her.

"I'll be there when you wake up, okay?…Thanks for being a good friend…Goodbye…"

Frank's lip quivered as he leaned in and kissed Saya on the cheek before stepping back. Hagi undid her blanket and cradled her in his arms, he nodded to Frank as he nodded in return, he understood that it was time for her to go. Hagi jumped out the window and flew into the night sky, so he could return Saya to Okinawa to sleep in her rightful resting place.

Later that night, Frank curled up in his bed, his apartment pitch black, he had no more tears to shed, no more pain to express. It was only a few hours ago that Saya was in his apartment, the hugs, the comfort, the care and love of a friend he thought he had lost months ago. And then in an instant, she was gone. He was still devastated that Saya had entered hibernation before he was able to spend time with her and properly say goodbye. Even though they had made amends, he felt like he had missed the opportunity to pick up where they left off and give her a proper farewell. But he knew she wouldn't want him to be sad, and that she would want him to live his life to the fullest even if she wasn't awake. It was saddening but bittersweet. But the most important thing was that before Saya went back to sleep, she knew, they knew; that it had all worked out in the end.

As Frank laid there, for the first time in what seemed like forever, he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. No more bad dreams, no more nightmares. Tomorrow would be a new day, and like the Miyagusuku family motto that Saya held in her heart; tomorrow is what she would want Frank to look forward to.


	13. Chapter 13

April 5th, 2013, Frank was finishing his second and final year of college, working towards his associate's degree in graphic design. It had been a long road, but all of his hard work had finally paid off as he came closer to his goal. He was considering going for his bachelor's, but part of him felt like maybe it wasn't the direction he wanted to go in life. The last three years had been good to him, with the occasional struggle, but overall it had been relatively quiet. Frank couldn't help but feel a little bored from time to time. He wanted more, he wanted to see what else the world had to offer. After having so many moments of self-reflection over the last three years, he had a lot to think about. For now, he would put his aspirations on hold so he could finish school.

Frank was sitting in his dorm studying for exams when a knock came at his door, on the other side of the door was the familiar voice of a classmate.

"Uh, Frank?"

"Yes?"

"This guy told me he was looking for you, I don't remember his name but he is across the street outside of the school entrance playing one of those big violins"

"Okay thank you!"

It dawned on Frank, big violin, the man meant cello, the person outside that wanted to see him was playing the cello. There was only one person he knew that played the cello that would want to see him. Could it be him? Regardless, Frank felt it was best not to keep them waiting. He left his dorm and raced to the entrance of the school. Across the street, he saw him, he was right, it was Hagi. Looking both ways, Frank waited for the cars to clear before racing across the street so he could greet his old friend.

Hagi was playing his cello, he stopped playing long enough to talk to Frank.

"Hello Frank"

"Hey,…I…I'm sorry it's just…"

Frank was at a loss for words.

"It's been a long time"

"Yeah, it has, how have you been?"

"Good, and I trust you are well"

"It's been good, I can't complain. So what's up? Is there something on you wanted to talk about?"

"It's almost time"

Frank knew what Hagi was talking about, but he couldn't let anyone else know about it, there were people hanging around outside of the campus. He got closer to Hagi and tried to talk as quietly and discreetly as possible.

"It's almost time? How much time are we talking about?"

"Soon, but there is a reason I am here; it's time for you to live up to your promise"

"My promise?"

"Your promise to be there for her when she woke up. There is going to be a celebration for when it's time. When she awakens, you must go to her and bring her to Kai's shop"

Frank had almost forgotten that he made a promise to Saya that night. But it had been three long years, and things had changed since then.

"I'd love to but I have exams all next week and these projects, I don't have as much time as I used to"

"I've spoken to David; he is going to pull a few strings for you"

"What? Hagi, I don't know"

Frank still sounded uncertain.

"Frank…you know Saya would want this; they have already made preparations for you. Please Frank, when it is time, be there for her"

"Well; it's not like I have a choice do I"

Frank smiled, and for the first time ever, Hagi smiled as well.

As Hagi put away his cello and got ready to leave, Frank stopped him to talk to him about one last thing.

"Hagi, listen um, I never got the chance to properly thank you so…um…thank you"

"Thank you"

As they both shook hands, Hagi pulled Frank in for a hug. Saya was right; Hagi really did care about him. It was a heartfelt moment, even if Hagi did hold on a little too tight, perhaps not being aware of his own strength. Regardless, it still meant a lot to Frank in the end. The two friends held each other for a few seconds before parting ways.

Frank knew what he had to do, he was going to do right by Hagi by honoring his request and keeping his promise; he would be there for Saya when she woke up from her three-year slumber.


	14. Chapter 14

April 10th, 2013, Frank was in Okinawa waiting patiently for Saya to awake, he sat inside of her crypt, mostly studying or doing work that needed to be done on his laptop. Occasionally, he found himself closing and reopening his work, he found it difficult to focus as he waited in anticipation for Saya to awaken.

The cocoon began rumbling, Frank quickly put down his work and went over to it. After several minutes Saya emerged from her sleep, Frank helped her out of her webs and gently laid her on the ground. When Saya's focus was finally clear; she smiled at the sight of her best friend.

"Good morning"

"Frank…it's…it's you"

Saya was smiling but still in a daze.

"Of course it's me"

"You…you came to…to bring me…home, like last time"

Saya weakly reached out for Frank.

"Of course I did, you're my friend remember? I'm here for you, I will always be there for you"

Frank eyes began to water.

"And I will always be there for you"

Saya wiped the tears from Frank's eyes.

Frank went through his things and pulled out the same sweater he had used to bundle up Saya the first time they met, and he remembered to bring along some pants and shoes so she could cover up properly. He waited patiently until she had enough strength to stand up. When Saya was finally on her feet, Frank reached into his pocket and pulled out the fortune from three years ago as an extra surprise for their reunion.

"Are you ready for our journey?"

"Of course I am…I know it will be a good one"

Frank left the very same place he first met Saya, to bring her home as he promised. And although this felt like the beginning of his journey, it wasn't. It was the continuation of a journey that started three years ago, and it was far from over. But that's what made it so special; because it was a journey Frank looked forward to, and one he hoped would never end.

End

 **Authors Note: I'd like to say thank you to everyone who decided to take time out to read my story, it's not the best, but I hope you enjoyed reading it. It took me years to finally upload it, albeit with changes; but I think those changes were for the best.**

 **\- TheBloodInfinite20XX**


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